Erin Casperson, guest blogger and Kripalu School of Ayurveda Intern According to Ayurvedic philosophy, ojas is the life-sustaining vitality that promotes immunity in the body. Ojas can keep you healthy during flu season and prevent depletion during a stretch of overtime at work. It takes a long time to build this nourishing substance, but, in [...]
Tag Archives: herbs
Posted on January 25th, 2013 by Deb Morgan in Kripalu Kitchen
Foodie Friday: Eggs Over Chorizo Spinach
A cooking traditionalist, I’m skeptical of any hint of a “pushing food to be more” approach. Why mess with perfection? But, whether in cooking, in raising our kids, in finding new careers, or in our most intimate relationships, we can invite that new person, relationship, skill, or food to become just a bit “more” by [...]
Posted on January 5th, 2013 by Jonathan Ambar in Ayurveda
Bundle Up with Ayurveda
Time-honored techniques to thaw winter’s chill Winter brings the festive sparkle of the holidays; fresh, snowy vistas; exhilarating outdoor sports … and, for many people, lethargy, dry skin, and runny noses. How can we keep up our spirits—and our health—when it’s so easy to let Old Man Winter bring us down? Ayurveda, the holistic-health system [...]
Posted on August 17th, 2012 by Annie B. Kay, MS, RD, RYT in Kripalu Kitchen
Summertime Phytonutrients
Summer is perfect for opening our senses to all that’s fresh and local. Choosing produce grown close to home yields great taste, supports your community’s farmers and economy, and cultivates a more direct connection to the earth. Nothing is more local than the herbs and greens you grow yourself. Greens are chock full of phytonutrients, plant compounds that provide a range of anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory benefits, as well as support the body’s natural detoxification process. Even if you’re not a gardener, you can still get a huge nutritional bang for your effort-filled buck by planting a few parsley, cilantro, or basil seeds in a window box.
Scientists are learning more about the power of phytonutrients every day. A single piece of fruit or serving of vegetable may contain hundreds or even thousands of different kinds, and the complex phytonutrient profiles of simple-seeming plants reminds us of the complexity of nature and of life itself. The role these nutrients play in health—if and how they synergize with other nutrients, and the interplay between them and our environments and lifestyle choices—are all active areas of research.
It’s clear that scientists are discovering what yogis have known all along: Fresh, local herbs and produce carry the essence of health. Let’s enjoy the taste of what summer offers us now.
Fresh Herbs for Savory Summer Fare
Parsley, rosemary, thyme, cilantro, mint, basil, oregano, lavender… the list of herbs we love and their many uses is endless. In the Kripalu Kitchen, we use fresh herbs year-round, but when summer’s warm weather comes, their appeal is even stronger. Fresh herbs add an uplifting layer of flavor and an enlivening aroma. Once you get in the habit of buying fresh herbs (or better yet, growing them yourself) you will find that they are hard to cook without.
Here are some tips on how to use and preserve your fresh herbs this summer:
Posted on April 6th, 2012 by Kimberly Jordan Allen in Nutrition
Cilantro: 10 Ways to Use the Superfood
Adored by many, loathed by some, cilantro can be used in countless ways to enhance chilly winter days with a tasty, healthful dose of nutrition. Often used in Mexican, Asian, and Caibbean cooking, and rich in minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants, cilantro can provide a healthful boost to many a meal. It’s even considered to be therapeutic. John Bagnulo, PhD, nutritionist at Kripalu notes:
Cilantro is a wonderful herb that has remarkable attributes for treating heavy-metal toxicity. Animal research has shown that cilantro contains molecules that prevent the deposition of lead and mercury in tissues. I recommend eating cilantro for people that have been exposed to toxic levels of heavy metal.
support our mission
The true measure of our mission is the impact we have on the lives of the people who walk through our doors. Find out more.
read our catalog
Follow Us!